A site dedicated to educating, experimenting, exploring, and of course eating all types of cheese.

Wednesday, September 22, 2010

Day Two Hundred and Twenty Five - A simple harvest dinner for one

Gosh this week is zooming by in a whirlwind! I guess the Fall season is starting out like a lion this year -- always a good sign in these weary economical times. Somewhat exhausting, yes, but definitely positive!

While thinking about what to wax cheese-ical about today, I thought instead of going into an depth complicated menu with cheeses that aren't easily found around town and lots of steps involved in the preparation, I'd keep it simple. Go with the menu I plan to make myself for dinner after a 20 mile training run starting at 6am and a day at the office.

So what's my dinner going to be composed of?

Veggies, Protein, Cheese, and lots of Greens!

Confession: One of my all time favorite veggies is brussel sprouts; I don't know where they get their bad rap from since I think they are consistently delish. Although we can find brussel sprouts year round, they just don't taste the same in the spring and summer months -- a little bit like my red wine drinking habits, I am a seasonal brussel sprout lover.

Even though the temperatures outside don't indicate the fact that it's late September, my roasting of some brussel sprouts this evening does. To roast brussel sprouts, I like to first cut them in half. Then dice up one garlic clove and half of a shallot. Put all of this into a baking dish, drizzle some olive oil, sprinkle some sea salt, and grate a nice bit of fresh Parmesan on top. Mix together. Roast in the oven for 35 to 40 minutes at 275 or until they are golden brown and tender.

Once your brussels are done, combine in a salad bowl with some roasted almonds, nice arugula, and a few basil leaves for an herbal brightness. Mix this all together and let the cooking juices from the brussels coat the lettuce leaves. Tonight, I plan on topping my salad with a simple two egg white omelette with some young goat gouda, chives, and crushed red pepper flakes. A simple dinner that I know will strike the right taste bud cords for me. However, I think that you might find this a more successful salad if you placed a poached egg on top instead of egg whites, but for my particular tastes I'll stick to the egg whites. Should you be making this, go the poached egg route and I guarantee you'll be pleased. It will be filling and all around satisfying.

SO WHAT IS FROMAGICAL?

Well, that is a good question!

Fromagical is meant to show you that cheese can be utterly magical! It is to be a mix of cheese consulting -- do you need to plan a cheese platter for your next cocktail party? Are you scared of going up to the cheese counter? Do you need help navigating what's what? Did you want someone to come into your home and give you an informative but totally fun lecture on cheese and different types?? Need ideas for recipes with a particular cheese? Want to know what sort of cheese to buy your boss? Your parents? Your boyfriend or girlfriend? Or wanting to know what sort of drink pairs perfectly with that cheese you bought at the Greenmarket?

You've come to the right place!

I am here to help -- your very own personalized cheese consultant.

About Me

By day, I run an art gallery and am very passionate about bringing fine art to people who appreciate it and who wake up in the morning to a smile on their face when they look at the new painting on their wall. In my free time, apart from marathon training, I spend as much of it as possible, eating, learning and experimenting with cheese, cooking, wine and spirits tasting, and well anything involved with food and wine.